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North Korea: UN Security Council approves new sanctions

China and Russia have backed a key resolution that curbs textile exports and restricts shipments of oil products. If Pyongyang stops its nuclear program, "it can reclaim its future," said the US ambassador to the UN.

The UN Security Council on Monday approved new sanctions against North Korea in response to Pyongyang's continued nuclear tests. China and Russia both backed the resolution drafted by the US which imposes new sanctions on North Korea, including a ban on textile exports and restricting shipments of oil products.

Speaking as the council passed the resolution in New York on Monday night, US Ambassador Nikki Haley said the US was not looking for war with North Korea and Pyongyang has "not yet passed the point of no return."

In the original draft, the US wanted a full oil embargo and a freeze on the foreign assets of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, but softened its demands in order to get the support of veto-holders Russia and China in the council.

Nevertheless, Haley insisted the measures were the strongest ever imposed on North Korea. "We are acting in response to a dangerous new development," Haley told the Security Council after the vote.

Nikki Haley, US ambassador to the UN, softened the text of the resolution to secure Russian and Chinese support

The resolution bans North Korea from importing natural gas liquids and condensates. It caps Pyongyang's imports of crude oil to the level of the last 12 months, and it limits the import of refined petroleum products to 2 million barrels a year.

The resolution also bans all textile exports and prohibits all countries from authorizing new work permits for North Korean workers. Both of these have been key sources of hard currency.

"The world will witness how [North Korea] tames the US gangsters by taking a series of actions tougher than they have ever envisaged," the foreign ministry said in a statement cited by the KCNA news agency.

The truth and myths of the Kim dynasty

A young leader

Kim Il Sung, the first and "eternal" president of North Korea, took power in 1948 with the support of the Soviet Union. The official calendar in North Korea begins with his birth year, 1912, designating it "Juche 1" after the state's Juche ideology. He was 41 when, as shown here, he signed the 1953 armistice that effectively ended the Korean War.

The truth and myths of the Kim dynasty

Hero worship

In the years and decades after the war, Pyongyang's propaganda machine worked hard to weave a mythical narrative around Kim Il Sung. His childhood and the time he spent fighting Japanese troops in the 1930s were embellished to portray him as an unrivaled military and political genius. At the 1980 party congress, Kim announced he would be succeeded by his son, Kim Jong Il.

The truth and myths of the Kim dynasty

Ruling to the end

In 1992, Kim Il Sung started writing and publishing his memoirs, entitled "Reminiscences: With the Century." Describing his childhood, the North Korean leader claims that he first joined an anti-Japanese rally at 6 years old and became involved with the independence struggle at 8. The memoirs remained unfinished at Kim Il Sung's death in 1994.

The truth and myths of the Kim dynasty

In his father's footsteps

After spending years in the top tiers of the regime, Kim Jong Il took power after his father's death. Kim Jong Il's 16-year rule was marked by famine and economic crisis in an already impoverished country. However, the cult of personality surrounding him and his father, Kim Il Sung, grew even stronger.

The truth and myths of the Kim dynasty

Rising star

Historians outside North Korea believe Kim Jong Il was born in a military camp in eastern Russia, most likely in 1941. However, the leader's official biography claims it happened on the sacred Korean mountain Paektu, exactly 30 years after his father, on April 15, 1942. A North Korean legend says the birth was blessed by a new star and a double rainbow.

The truth and myths of the Kim dynasty

Family trouble

Kim Jong Il had three sons and two daughters with three different women. This 1981 photo shows Kim Jong Il sitting besides his son Kim Jong Nam, with his sister-in-law and her two children in the background. Kim Jong Nam was eventually assassinated in 2017.

The truth and myths of the Kim dynasty

Grooming a successor

In 2009, Western media reported that Kim Jong Il had picked his youngest son, Kim Jong Un, to take over as the head of the regime. The two appeared together at a military parade on 2010, a year before Kim Jong Il passed away.

The truth and myths of the Kim dynasty

Together

According to Pyongyang, the death of Kim Jong Il in 2011 was marked by a series of mysterious events. State media reported that ice snapped loudly at a lake on the Paektu mountain during a sudden snowstorm, with a glowing message appearing on the rocks. After Kim Jong Il's death, a 22-meter (72-foot) statue of him was erected next to the one of his father (l.) in Pyongyang.

The truth and myths of the Kim dynasty

Mysterious past

Kim Jong Un mostly stayed out of the spotlight before his ascent to power. His exact age is disputed, but he is believed to have been born between 1982 and 1984. He was reportedly educated in Switzerland. In 2013, he surprised the world by meeting with former NBA star Dennis Rodman in Pyongyang.

The truth and myths of the Kim dynasty

A new cult

Like the leaders before him, Kim Jong Un is hallowed by the state's totalitarian regime. In 2015, South Korean media reported about a new teacher's manual in the North that claimed Kim Jong Un could drive at the age of 3. In 2017, state media said that a monument to the young leader would be build on Mount Paektu.

The truth and myths of the Kim dynasty

A Kim with a hydrogen bomb

Altough Kim took power at a younger age and with less of a public profile than his father and grandfather, he has managed to maintain his grip on power. The assassination of his half-brother Kim Jong Nam in 2017 served to cement his reputation abroad as a merciless dictator. The North Korean leader has also vastly expanded the country's nuclear arsenal.

Author: Darko Janjevic

Russia and China back talks

Speaking at the council on Monday night, both the Chinese and Russian envoys called for negotiations with North Korea. China's envoy, Liu Jieyi, said the relevant parties should resume negotiations "sooner rather than later," and urged Pyongyang to "take seriously the expectations and will of the international community" to halt its nuclear program.

Russia's Vassily Nebenzia said it would be a "big mistake" to underestimate the two countries' proposal to kick-start North Korea talks. "We will insist it be considered," he said.

The Security Council has previously called for the resumption of six-party talks aimed at negotiating a complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. Those talks involving North Korea, South Korea, China, Russia, Japan and the US ended in 2009.